On this day: December 27

Charles Darwin embarks on the HMS Beagle, "Howdy Doody" makes its TV debut, Apollo 8 splashes down after orbiting the Moon, and the Soviet Union occupies Afghanistan, all on this day.

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Warner Bros. Pictures

1981: Composer, singer and actor Hoagy Carmichael, best known for composing the music for "Stardust," "Georgia on My Mind," "The Nearness of You" and "Heart and Soul," four of the most-recorded American songs of all time, dies of heart failure at the age of 82 in Rancho Mirage, California.

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